this morning, closing the gap. >> new numbers showing the race for the white house tighter than it's been in weeks since the president takes a shot overflight, and it's on debate performance. that deadly meningitis outbreak to more states this morning. as the pharmacy at the center of it recalled every single product it makes. wedding tragedy. dozens brawl during a reception. police arrive on scene to break it up. but too late for one man who died during the fight. and nascar nightmare. a titanic tussle on the track at talladega. a pileup involving dozens of cars. some of the best drivers in the world speaking out this morning.

good morning, everyone. and on this columbus day, there is no holiday off for the presidential candidates with just 29 days until the election. >> the rest of the month, but who's counting, right. >> not you. >> no. the candidates are 3,000 miles apart today. president obama in california and mitt romney in virginia. but both campaigns have their eyes on a new poll that shows the race getting even tighter. >> we begin with abc's tahman bradley in washington this morning. good morning, tahman. >> good morning, paula, good morning, rob. polls show a tighter race after last night's debate. and president obama is bringing up huge cash, in fact, he's back on track to raise more than $1 billion. >> reporter: overnight the stars came out to help president obama. bill clinton and katy perry were among celebrities on hand at a fund-raiser. one of five events expected to

raise $10 million. this after mr. obama and democrats raised $181 million last month. the president made a joke last week. >> they just performed flawlessly, night after night. i can't always say the same. >> reporter: the president's rival, mitt romney is on the stump drawing huge crowds, thousands of accounts in florida. >> you'll have the chance to hear his answers or his nonanswers. now, of course, days later, we're hearing his excuses. >> reporter: a new gallup poll confirms romney picked up momentum after last week's debate. president obama is leading romney three points after being up six points after his speech. romney focusololk coke us on hi plan. it calls for a $5 trillion tax cut.

>> reporter: the candidates pounced on tv ads. romney does want to cut tax rates that would reduce revenue by $5 trillion over ten years. romney has refused to say which one, leaving him open to attack. >> today, mitt romney will launch an attack of his own, delivering a foreign policy speech slamming president obama's middle east policy. rock and paula. >> all right, tahman bradley, live in washington this monday morning. thank you, tahman. and of course, the main event this week is thursday's vice presidential debate, abc's live coverage begins at 9:00 eastern, 6:00 pacific. and politics overseas now, it is another victory for venezuela venezuelian president hugo chavez. chavez although is battling cancer received 54% of the vote, leaving his supporters to celebrate right there in the streets. voter turnout was more than 80%. that's the highest in decades and the election was largely peaceful. the origin of a drone that

crossed into israeli territory over the weekend is mystery this morning. israeli military shot down the unmanned aircraft in a remote area to avoid civilian casualties. now israeli officials don't believe it took off from palestinian territory but it has focused on hezbollah which released several drones in the past. and new details on that rare form of meningitis linked to steroids. seven people have died so far. >> reporter: the pharmacy at the center of the meningitis outbreak today announced a voluntary recall of every product it makes. saying this action is being taken out of an abundance of caution due to the potential risk of contamination. >> i'm scared. >> reporter: the number of meningitis patients jumping today from 64 to 91 confirmed cases in nine states with seven confirmed deaths. the outbreak began with a

contaminated shipment of drugs from a new england compounding center. that drug injected into the spine for back pain was contaminated with a fungus that can go from spinal 234r50ud up to the brain causing a rare form of meningitis. the company is one of thousands of compound pharmacies that mixed their own medicine. the idea to let some taylor make drugs for patients who need a special blend, like those who have allergies. as for the latest victim, janet russell's family in nashville is praying she'll pull through. >> everybody is going through it. it's hard to see your mother. >> reporter: and that widened recall affects more than 1,000 products everything from drugs to simple vitamins. but the company is saying there's no reason to think that the other products are contaminated. mark glean blat, abc news, new york. the outbreak could affect hundreds if not thousands of people who received the steroid

injections for back pain for the months of july through september. we put that information on our website abcnews.com. and the war is now entering its 12th year making it the longest running war in our nation's history. 68,000 troops remain on the ground there. president obama has promised a complete withdrawal by 2014. and funeral services are set today for the border patrol agent shot to death last week. nicholas ivie is being laid to rest. the nation's first commercial space cargo launched overnight in florida. the falcon 9 rocket took off from cape canaveral station to the international sfags. the rocket is carrying ice cream. not bad. a freezer full of experiments and hundreds of pounds of spare parts and supplies. >> freeze-dried ice cream or the

real deal ice cream. >> like the ben and jerry's, you know. it's the coldest air of the season for the eastern half of the country with freeze warnings and advisories from nearly two dozen states from texas all the way to new york. showers and thunderstorms from washington, d.c. showers around northern wisconsin and michigan. >> 50s from chicago and detroit and new york, 60s from texas to minnesota. 95 in phoenix, and 75 in sacramento. and coming up this columbus day, really going to extremes. how about a skydive from 23 miles up? it's like a marathon for a sky drive. >> good luck for that one. and those sky-high gas prices now at an emergency measure could mean help is on the way for folks in california. and later, 25 cars crash. the wreck they're calling the big one.

welcome back, everyone. california is taking emergency steps to bring down its record gasoline prices. gas costs more there than anywhere else in the country. the average price is $4.66 a gallon and is well above $5 in that area, as you're seeing. refineries now have the green light to switch to cheaper, wind blend gas. meantime, thieves hitting the california gas stations three times stealing gas. well, there is a warning of another global recession. new numbers show the world

recovery is, quote, on the rope, because of economies here in spain which lully saw new protests over the weekend. many governments unable to take politically unpopular steps. the brightest, though, according to the study is the u.s. economy. well, it is a sign of the times, fewer people are sending greeting cards thanks to the internet. so hallmark is closing a factory that made a third of its cards. it says sales in greeting cards are off by one-sixth. it said the company is adopting new online technology just like its customers. liam neeson action film single was tops at the box office this weekend doing twice twice the business, the take for "taken 2" was 50 million bucks. meanwhile, "hotel transylvania" checked in at $27 million and "pitch perfect at $17 million. >> even if you don't like the

message, it needs to get out there about travesties around the globe. when we come back, see a wedding party turn into one ugly mess. the camera was rolling as a drawn brawl turned deadly. also, an important new clue this morning in a desperate search for a girl who disappeared simply trying to make her way to school. i love this time of year. it's like its own new beginning. it's all about change. the kids are going back to school, it's the perfect time to get back to you. to do something for yourself. a perfect time to join weight watchers. you spend your life taking care of others, why not take this time to take care of you? why not join weight watchers and start losing weight and feeling good, right now? you deserve it. you just gotta believe. [ female announcer ] join now for free. hurry offer ends october 20th. [ jennifer ] weight watchers. because it works.

the latest thing to wear with beautiful tops. beautiful underarms. wear with toga tops, yoga tops, and va-va-voom tops. dove go sleeveless makes underarms soft and smooth in just five days. effective protection. beautiful result. a big chill in the upper mird west has cleared the way for skiers, snowboarders to hit the slopes early. see that, you can go to minnesota for this. the wild mountain ski resort in minnesota became the first resort in the country to open for the season thanks to plunging temperatures that allowed them to make enough is snow. water slides, get this, were still going two weeks ago. and now a look at your morning road conditions on this

columbus day. a slick community from the mid-atlantic to the carolinas, coastal georgia and florida. highways could be wet from the upper midwest to northern minnesota to the upper peninsula of michigan. >> so what you're saying, you're not a ski bunny, right? >> huh-uh. >> and should be a fabulous day for flying. no weather delays expected across the country. get a glimpse of that in your memory. now, to a wedding day tragedy in philadelphia. a special day for two brides ruined by a drunken brawl. >> the alcohol-fueled fight reruptsed between two wedding parties at a hotel bar. dozens of guests were involved and three people were arrested. things got is so out of the control, police officers reportedly had to use their taser guns. one man died of an apparent heart attack. he turned out to be the uncle of one of the brides. we'll have this story coming up later on "good morning america." and there has been a major discovery in the search for a

little colorado missing since friday. police in suburban denver say they found jessica's backpack six miles from where she was supposed to be. and new findings out this morning highlight a serious danger for children with autism. wandering away finds it's very common. a study published in the journal of ped yattics show that half the children with autism had wandered after the age of 4. some of the children nearly missed getting hit by a car. and pressure is building on nascar this morning to improve the safety of its tracks after a major crash this weekend. 25 cars were involved in a pileup after the race's leader tried to block a long line of traffic. >> going in the middle and can't get over. >> reporter: the biggest wreck in recent nascar memory, sparked

by leader tony stewart on the very last lap. a twisting mass of metal, smoke and flame, some of the best drivers in the world in the chaos as cars can spin and splatter across the track. >> nascar will check the video. >> reporter: nascar veterans like jeff gordon and dale earnhardt jr. clearly upset after the race. >> that clearly is bumper cars at, you know, almost 200 miles per hour. i don't know anybody that likes that. >> that is ridiculous that all those cars torn up. >> reporter: tony stewart accepts the blame for the mayhem which briefly sent his car airborne. when the dust finally settled is this what was left of it. for nearly 200 laps it was a tame race before it was already being called "the big one." most incredible, watch as matt kenseth's car emerges from the melee, somehow unscathed, to cross the finish line. races like this, exciting for

fans but not for the guys behind the wheel. >> is this is how we want to find another job. >> cars raising up to 200 miles an hour. talladega along with daytona are considered two of the most dangerous tracks in racing. and more sports now. playoffs begin in the big leagues and drew brees has an historic night as the saints finally won. we get the highlights from espn news. >> good morning, i'm jade mccarthy with your "sportscenter" update. yanks and orioles had to wait extra to start that. and this was tied in the ninth, bedard to johnson. johnson gave up three home runs in the entire season. that opened the floodgates for this one. robinson cano adding two runs to it. the yankees in the ninth inning, 7-2, take a 1-0 series lead.

drew brees looking to make a little bit of history and get its team the first win of the season. saints down. brees to henderson. a touchdown pass in 48 straight games. sean payton, the coach there to watch history. saints down 14. brees connects with colston. 16-yard touchdown. a three-point game. fourth quarter, first and goal. brees. 141 yards, three touchdowns. the most touchdown passes in saints history, brees, four tds, first one of the win to avoid that 0-5. and that is a look at some of your sports. i'm jade mccarthy with your "sportscenter" update. hope you have a great day. >> thanks, jade. up next, the guy they call

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planet? >> whatever it is, it's nuts. australian daredevil felix baumgartner, otherwise known as fearless felix, trying to break the sound barriers, heading up 23 miles to capture it. and then he will jump out over the new mexico desert. he hopes to reach speed, get this, 690 miles an hour. >> a lot of conditioning goes into this. physical, mental, emotional. i just don't know how you survive something like that, going 990 miles an hour. >> it's we're not built to go that speed. >> i don't know how he's doing it. also, another thrill seeker is at it again in new york city. david blaine is spending three days in the middle of a million volts of electricity. the only thing reflecting that is a chain-built body suit. >> blaine fascination with

electricity, as well as a human plasma ball. this is interactive. fans can control the amounts of electricity zapping him with the touch. >> i hope he doesn't have any enemies or disgruntled ex-wives out there. are you kidding me. >> from the free fall to the electricity. we're getting. >> reporter: boring. >> we've been boring a lot so -- man. well, the old ball and chain may not be bad after all in. looks like hauling around your better half can pay off. >> couples all over gathered in maine for the annual wife-carrying championship over the weekend. >> can you do that? like a piggyback ride. >> i respect that. they don't have to be actually husband and wife to do this thing. the team can be, you know, friends or whatever. but they did have to skillfully navigate a tricky course. a three-foot hurdle and a pond called the widow maker. >> they won the wife's weight in

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next, final preparations underway for the arrival of president obama. >> half a dozen businesses are vandalized in oakland, including city hall and police building. >> could rain be heading our way? mike will have the answer. still have a chance of scattered showers i'll show you when and where. cooler than averagehe gulf coas new york. showers and thunderstorms from d.c. into the carolinas and florida. and before we go on this monday morning, big bird on the defensive. and taking his case to late night over the weekend. >> amid romney's threats to defund pbs impacting the much

beloved sesame street character has set off a debate. here's abc's reena ninan. >> reporter: big bird took the high road on "saturday night live." >> before you go, do you have any political statement you'd like to make? >> no, i don't want to ruffle any feathers. >> reporter: but plenty of feathers were ruffled after the campaign. >> i'm going to stop pbs. i'm going to stop all the things, i like big bird. i actually like you, too. >> making it for big bird. you better take a run for it. >> reporter: keeping the fight over funding. dmrp taking the battle stating from sesame street and letting wall street run hog wild. >> reporter: so was it a mistake targeting america's favorite yellow bird. >> it wasn't a targeting. it was points to one big example. >> reporter: but the truth is, the show derived less than 1.0% of funding. after that 17,000 tweets came in

about #big bird. welcome to the middle class, big bird. big bird has help the romney campaign to raise $12 million. >> how did you find out your name was mentioned in the debate? >> i got a million tweets. >> so you're on twitter? >> no, i'm a bird. [ laughter ] that's how we talk. >> oh, okay. >> what's also talking are the sales here at this toy store in washington, d.c. they say they've sold more big bird items than they have in weeks past, proving just how profitable one yellow bird can be. reena ninan, abc news, washington. >> trying to get big bird in the studio. >> a lot of following. >> the part about the debate was deficient. >> he's been a good sport. that's what's making news in america this morning. >> make sure you stay with us for "good morning america." have a good holiday. thanks for joining us, everybody.